I made fresh ricotta last week for the first time in months and was reminded how easy it is. Forty minutes start to finish. I was admiring my handiwork at breakfast the next day when my husband said, “Too bad it’s not sheep milk.” Well, yeah. Until we move to Italy (not gonna happen), I’ll have to make our ricotta with cow’s milk, but I’ll enjoy every bite. The result is tender and sweet, and if you want to try your hand at it, you can find the recipe here and a video demo below. But ricotta produced the Italian way, with rich sheep’s milk, is the benchmark for me and—glory be—I just found some in San Francisco.

It's from Busti, a Tuscan producer, makers of the mixed-milk Morbidoso di Toscana that I raved about last summer. The producer calls it Ricottina, probably because it is small, about 8 ounces. You’ll demolish it in no time.

I found the Busti Ricottina (top image, with honey and poppy seeds) at Rainbow Grocery, where it’s available sporadically. Milk Farm in Los Angeles and Sunshine Foods in St. Helena also carry it when the distributor has some. It has the lifespan of a snow cone so it’s a challenge for shops. I love its moist, delicate yet sliceable texture and the slightly gamy flavor that confirms it’s from sheep milk.

In my dreams, we will one day have enough dairy sheep in this country to make sheep ricotta a cheese counter staple. I may not live long enough. In the meantime, a good domestic cow’s milk ricotta (such as Bellwether Farms or Calabro Hand-Dipped will work in any of the following recipes and is what I used for testing. I hope these dishes—all personal favorites—bring some new flavors to your table in the weeks to come.